Editorial: Bioactive compounds present in essential oils: Advances and pharmacological applications
Mozaniel Santana de Oliveira, Oliviu Voștinaru, Daniela Rigano, Eloísa Helena de Aguiar Andrade
Frontiers in Pharmacology
Abstract
pharmaceutical industry, these oils are widely studied, mainly for their potential 20 applications as biologically active agents. Over the years, several pharmacological 21 activities have been demonstrated for the volatile compounds, such as antioxidant, 22 anticancer, antiprotozoal, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, phytotoxic, and 23 neuroprotective.Several classes of compounds can be identified in essential oils, the main ones being 25 monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, benzenoids, and phenylpropanoids. Species of the 26 Amaranthaceae family, for example, are rich in bioactive compounds that are beneficial 27 to human health, the main ones being α-terpinene, δ-3-carene, limonene, thymol, 28 carvacrol, γ-terpinene, α-terpinolene, piperitone oxide, geraniol, α-pinene , β-pinene, iso-